Fan Service [Yunho]

17

"Only 4 hours left," Yunho informed me.

Time had flown by since I started spending most of it trying to regulate my heart rate. I failed often...especially when he smiled.

We'd already wasted half a day playing silly games and talking about nothing. I had to constantly remind myself not to stare at him. I didn't want him to know how I felt.

"Do you think you could manage to catch a single M&M in 4 hours?" I teased with a laugh. "Dmitri isn't going to be happy when he gets in the car and steps on a dozen M&Ms."

"Charlie! I can't believe you'd say that," Yunho gasped with a twinkle in his eyes. "There's way more than a dozen down there," he chuckled as he used his left foot to crunch loudly on the ones he'd missed so far.

I rolled my eyes with a laugh and opened the window, letting the breeze fly past me. I felt free...like nothing could mess us up.

"So..." I began with a wide smile and eyes squinting from the sun. "What's your favorite part about being an idol?"

He thought for a moment, letting memories flicker across his face until he settled on an answer. "A lot of people hate them, but I like doing fan service when I'm picked for it."

"Why's that'?" I asked just before tossing another M&M his way, laughing when he missed it again.

"Because I know they need me. I know for the hour or however long I'm with the fans, I'm making things a little better," he explained with a contented sigh and soft reminiscent smile.

His words hit me though. They felt like a stab to my chest...an attack on my character. "So you only let me come on tour because I'm the neediest fan?"

"Charlie," Yunho frowned. "I didn't mean it like that."

It was obvious it hadn't been his intention, but it still hurt that he viewed us like that...as trapped princesses in need of saving.

"It's true though, isn't it?" I asked, sitting up straighter and rolling up the window. "I needed a job. I needed money. I needed a place to stay. I needed a way to leave the city. I needed non-toxic people in my life. I had nothing until you intervened."

"So what?" he shrugged. "Things are better now. I saw a way to help you, so I did what I could. I won't let you make me feel ashamed or guilty about that."

"Well...what about now?" I asked him, heart pounding as I did so. Did he still see me as a project or as a person?

"What about now?" he shrugged. "You're my friend," he answered with ease and a slight twinkle in his eye. "And the worst M&M thrower I've ever known."

I sighed in relief, feeling a tad bit better. The last thing I wanted was for the boy I thought I had feelings for to see me as a perpetual charity case.

With the tension from a moment ago gone, I tossed a whole handful at him with a laugh, gasping in surprise when he actually managed to catch one and held it between his teeth like a prize.

"You were bound to catch one eventually," I teased as I popped a few into my mouth as well.

"It's all about odds," he grinned proudly.

From then on, the drive continued in easy silence. Yunho watched the road, and I watched Yunho. I watched his hands grip the wheel a little tighter with every turn. I watched his eyes crinkle when the sun came out from behind the clouds. And I watched his lips twitch in amusement when he realized I was staring.

"How much further?" he asked. I was holding his phone and acting as a navigator...sort of. The GPS did most of the work.

"Just a few miles," I answered just as the phone told him to pull off at the exit. His hands tightened slightly, his pretty fingers gripping the leather as he turned again. "How far will this hotel be from your venue?" I asked breathlessly. I needed to pull myself together. Getting excited about the way he held the steering wheel was beyond normal thinking.

"About two hours," he answered. I opened my mouth to argue that he should pick somewhere closer, but he interrupted me before I could say anything. "Which I know sounds like a lot but we have to come back this way after the show anyway."

"Promise?" I checked. I didn't want him to go out of his way for me anymore.

"Promise," he smiled as he turned again and pulled into the parking lot.

The hotel was unlike any place I'd ever seen. It looked more like a castle than anything else with its giant archways and wooden beams. Even Yunho who must've stayed in the nicest places across the world looked impressed.

"I hope the beds are just as nice," he grinned before yawning. "I'm exhausted."

"Me too," I agreed while trying not to smile at how adorable his yawn looked.

As we unloaded the car and walked inside, I couldn't help but stare at the guests who didn't question my presence for a minute. They thought I belonged here in this world. For the first time, I wondered if maybe I did.

"Hi," Yunho greeted the receptionist warmly.

"Why hello there! How may I help you today?" she replied with a smile that seemed too genuine for an employee to have.

"We're checking in," he explained. "There should be two rooms under the name Jeong Yunho."

The lady searched the name with a frown before informing us, "I'm only seeing one room dear. Is there another name?"

Immediately my heart dropped to my stomach, and I worriedly looked at Yunho.

"Oh, um..." he paused trying to think for a moment, "Maybe the second is under Carr, Charlie."

"Sorry, dear. I'm not seeing that either," she shook her head and tapped her keyboard as if willing a second room to appear.

"My friend Dmitri Petrov made the reservation. Did he put it under his name?"

Again she checked, but deep down I knew the answer and it made me both nauseous and anxious...so anxious that I wiped my sweaty palms on my jeans.

"If there's one room, is there at least two beds?" I spoke up, trying to compromise on the situation.

"I'm afraid not, and unfortunately with the football game tomorrow, we're all booked up for the weekend."

"Oh," Yunho frowned and turned to me, knowing I would be most affected by this. "I can go catch up to the guys and stay the night in Toronto. It's really no big deal."

"You were just saying in the parking lot that you were tired," I pouted and tried to calm the fear that plagued me as I turned again to the receptionist. "Do you have any pull-out beds?"

She was shaking her head before I even finished the sentence.

"Char," Yunho stole my attention away from her. "This is completely up to you. I have no problem driving to Toronto tonight if it means..."

"Toronto?" the woman interrupted him. "Honey, there was a crash that's blocked everything up in that direction. You'll be gridlocked for hours."

"I guess we have no choice," I said bravely and held out my hand to collect the solitary hotel key.